After getting his first Series bass, Jeff knew he was ready for a custom instrument, tailor made to his specifications. With Greg from B and B Music, they came up with a general design for the bass, but initially neither one expected that a Hero was about to be born. Anyone that thinks it's easy to make decisions of the magnitude this type of instrument commands is mistaken. It was Jeff's good fortune he had a seasoned sales person like Greg, who was familiar with the product (Greg himself is a longtime Series I bass owner). He also had a fair idea of what he wanted; still the process of making all the final decisions relating to this one-of-a-kind bass took many weeks of phone calls and emails. Acting as his guide, Susan reviewed all of the requested options, always considering how each feature added would impact the final design, both visually and sonically. Because so many options are available from us, a project like this could easily get out of control, but we would never let that happen. The effort from all parties involved arrived at this exquisitely balanced opus of art, form and function, the Roman Conqueror.

	One of Jeff's favorite players of all time was John Entwistle. The Roman numerals were inspired by and are a small tribute to John, as he had similar inlays on one of his other basses. With such a dark and imposing wood, we felt standard white Mother of Pearl would look too stark on this bass. Instead, we used Golden Mother of Pearl and are we ever glad we did! The natural golden color of the shell is the perfect compliment to the overall appearance. The shifting golden hues are very active when you see the bass in person and can view it from many angles. Susan designed the font just for this bass, evoking carved stone. Then Mica scaled the roman numerals to fit each of the spaces. Mike cut the shell and inlaid the pieces in the fingerboard.

	The side Omegas are first cut with a bandsaw along a pencil tracing of the template for the body shape. After we glue the laminates for the body together, we use a router to roundover the edge. Then it's hours of hand sanding to get just the right look and feel. The side Omegas look cool and relieve some of the weight, but keep in mind that Triple Omega body shapes are best played standing up, those little tips may not be the most comfortable thing resting on your thigh.

	The Knob peghead shape is the natural match for the Triple Omega body. Both have elaborate carving and we think they make a nice couple. On Jeff's bass, like all Series IIs, the front of the peghead is bookmatched. Since Quilted Coco Bolo is such a rare wood, we have to make our own veneer by bandsawing a thin sheet then taking this sheet on a few trips through our Timesaver abrasive planer until it's the final thickness. Another standard item on the Series II is the inlaid logo with shell. Only this time, we've added a collection of Abalone rays bursting from the cloud.

	Bookmatching the top laminate to center covers the neck from the front view of the bass. Only when you look in the Omega or turn the bass over does the through body neck reveal itself. And here in the Omega is the gathering of all the main woods in the bass: the Maple and Ebony neck, the Quilted Coco Bolo top and back, the Maple and Purpleheart accent laminates.

	Impossible to capture in a photograph, Quilted Coco Bolo is an amazing wood. This particular piece is interesting in that it retains the "normal" alternating red-orange and dark brown-violet lines typical in Coco Bolo, and the Quilted figure pattern is like an overlay sprinkled all around it. The combination of Quilted Coco Bolo top and back laminates with the Ebony neck laminates results in a bass with such a powerful low end and sustain, that language falls short. It must be heard to be appreciated. We've only made a handful of instruments with Quilted Coco Bolo, and we've only got enough to build a couple more. Who knows if we'll ever run across something like this again?

	All the brass hardware is made right here in our shop. For the Series II we goldplate all the brass parts. This means we setup the bass and slot the saddles and string nut, then disassemble all the hardware and buff it to a mirror-like finish before sending it to our favorite goldplater. They lavish a thick layer of 24K jeweler's quality goldplating on the parts. Once reassembled, there's no cutting through the plating, all the setup's been done and there's no place for the plating to flake or corrode. That will take years of love and playing to get through.

	The string nut is our standard issue adjustable style, of course goldplated to match the rest of the hardware. The goldplating is done after the string slots are cut, so the entire surface is plated and protected from corrosion. The center screw anchors the nut in place so it won't fall off when you remove the strings. The outer two screws are for adjusting the height of each side. Each string nut is handmade and individually fit to each instrument. The adventure is just beginning for Jeff and his Roman Conqueror. We can't wait to hear reports of their quests together.

SPECIFICATIONS Series II 5-string bass Quilted Coco Bolo top and back Double accent: Purpleheart accent laminate with Maple pinstripe Ebony neck laminates Continuous wood backplates Triple Omega body shape with Pistol Grip Roman Numeral inlays in Golden Mother of Pearl Bookmatched Knob peghead shape Inlaid logo with shell and rays Polyester gloss finish with satin neck feel Sold by: B and B Music 205 S. Dual Hwy Camden, DE 19934 (302) 697 2155

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